1) Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates generally to agricultural implements with baskets which collapse or telescope for storage, and more specifically to an interlock system for preventing specific potentially damaging movements of the basket or unloading structure when the basket is in a compact storage position.
2) Related Art:
Implements such as cotton harvesters typically include a large dumpable crop receptacle which can reduce access by the machine to areas where there are overhead space limitations. To alleviate this problem, some machines are equipped with baskets which can be moved to a more compact storage position. For example, the John Deere Model 9960 Cotton Picker includes a telescoping basket generally of the type shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,297 issued 5 June 1990 and of common ownership with the present application. Since machine damage can occur if basket dumping is attempted while the basket is retracted, some provision is made to prevent actuation of the hydraulic dump cylinders until the basket is telescoped to the normal working configuration. For example, a separate valve installed in the hydraulic system restricts flow to the dump cylinders when the basket is in the storage position. The separate valve, although providing the necessary interlocking function, adds cost and complexity to the harvester hydraulic system.